OLEKSANDR USYK CONFIRMS HE WILL FIGHT TYSON FURY AGAIN—BUT ONLY FOR THE UNDISPUTED TITLE
Oleksandr Usyk is ready for Fury 3! Discover his "undisputed" demands and the plans for a record-breaking 2026 fight in America.
Oleksandr Usyk says he's open to a third fight with Tyson Fury, but only if the undisputed title is up for grabs.
These two have had a real rivalry going, with two huge fights in 2024. The first time, Usyk won by decision after a back-and-forth battle, becoming the undisputed champ.
They fought again seven months later, and Usyk won another close one. Soon after, Fury, who's 37, said he was retiring but then changed his mind a few months later.
Fury has wanted a third fight with Usyk for a while, as long as it's in the UK, since their first two fights were in Saudi Arabia. But back in October, Usyk's advisor, Serhii Lapin, seemed to shut down the idea of another fight. Lapin told the Ring, “Theoretically, it’s an interesting option, but for whom? If boxing fans truly support it, then maybe. I think that chapter is already closed.”
In a recent interview, Usyk, who just turned 39, said he plans to keep fighting for two more years and is aiming for a big 2026 in the ring. Even though he didn't seem interested in a third fight with Fury before, he's now open to it, as long as the undisputed title is on the line. He said, Why not, but only if it’s a fight for the undisputed status again.
Fury has been training in Thailand recently to get ready for a fight. He wants to have a warm-up fight before the end of April, leading up to a possible big fight in the summer. In a video on Instagram, Fury got his fans excited by hinting at a big announcement about his return. He said, “Just done a brutal session here. Second session of the day; I’m not gonna lie, that was tough.
“Did a good 12 rounds in the gym; it was about 34-35 degrees, sweating alive! I’ve got my electrolytes here to get all the goodness back in my body after sweating it all out. It’s been a really positive day again. I suppose when you wake up at 30 degrees every day, it’s definitely going to be positive.
“I’m very motivated, very happy, and I’m in a good place mentally, physically and emotionally. Just working on stuff nice and steady. The return of the Mac is coming. Can’t wait for a beautiful year.” He captioned the footage: “Work update 2026, let’s go. Massive announcement incoming.”
But Fury might have to wait for his chance at Usyk. Usyk has also said he's interested in fighting Deontay Wilder, possibly in front of a record-breaking crowd. Having already beaten Fury and Anthony Joshua, Usyk wants to add Wilder to his list of wins.
First of all, it's the USA—I want to box in America. Secondly, Wilder has been at the top for the last 10 years. This is about sporting interest. In the big three, there were Joshua, Fury, and Wilder. I beat Joshua twice, I beat Fury twice, and one unbeaten one remains — Wilder, he said.
There are reports that San Francisco is planning a huge boxing event that could break attendance records, with up to 150,000 fans. YouTube is reportedly leading these plans. The event is part of the ‘Iconic’ series, which will include various events throughout the year from IVisit Boxing.
The promoters really want Usyk to be involved, even though the fight card isn't set yet. They're planning to turn San Francisco's Civic Centre Plaza into an open-air boxing arena, with the ring in front of City Hall. And good news for fans – most of the tickets will be free.
IVB chief Ed Pereira told the Mail: “We are open to working with all promoters, managers, content creators and fighters, so of course we’d be open to speaking to a boxer of that calibre. Who wouldn’t want Usyk on their card? It’s going to be more than just a fight. What attracted us to YouTube, and YouTube to us, was that commitment to cultural moments.
“It’s all about creating a cultural moment – a cultural moment in the city of San Francisco, a cultural moment in California, and a cultural moment for the world. Anybody can go and put a show on and just produce it live on their own YouTube channel… but we are doing the same as what the NFL did.
“This partnership with YouTube puts us in the next league. Boxing fans want to see the biggest fights, and they want to see the biggest fights on the biggest stages. But, ultimately, I want to make it accessible to the casual fan… and everyone has YouTube on their phones.”
MAYWEATHER VS. PACQUIAO 2: CAN THE LAS VEGAS SPHERE BREAK REVENUE RECORDS?
Mayweather vs. Pacquiao 2 at the Sphere! Read about the $4,000+ ticket prices, the 17,600 capacity, and new streaming rumours.
When it comes to the Floyd Mayweather Jr vs Manny Pacquiao rematch, the choice of venue, Las Vegas Sphere, changes the game. You just can’t rely on ticket sales the way you could back in 2015. There’s only so much space, and that puts a cap on one of the biggest money-makers from their first fight.
People are already throwing around some wild numbers about how much this rematch could pull in. They keep looking back at that first fight, which still holds the record for the highest-grossing boxing event ever.
Back then, they raked in about $72 million from just over 16,000 fans at the MGM Grand. The Sphere isn’t much bigger at best; you get 17,600 seats, and that’s if you squeeze in every last one. So, even if you max out the space, you’re only adding about 1,300 seats. That’s not a game-changer.
So, how do you make more money? It comes down to charging more for tickets. The 2015 fight already had an average ticket price north of $4,000. To top that, promoters need to crank up the prices for premium seats and VIP experiences.
Mayweather hasn’t fought since he stopped Conor McGregor in 2017. Pacquiao came back last year and fought Mario Barrios to a draw for the WBC welterweight title. Even now, both guys are still huge names. Their first fight had the whole world watching, and it paid off big time.
But this second act could look different. In 2015, the pay-per-view model pulled in a record 4.6 million buys in the U.S. This time, there’s talk about going with a streaming deal instead. If that happens, most of the money comes from broadcast rights and sponsorships, not just people splurging on tickets.
The Sphere itself will give the rematch a unique vibe. But with the limited number of seats, what really matters is how they price those tickets and how much they can bring in from media rights. The days of packing in way more fans for the gate are over, at least for this fight.
UNDISPUTED METRICS: ANALYZING USYK’S 24-0 RECORD AGAINST THE HEAVY-HITTING DUTCH "KING OF KICKBOXING."
Usyk vs Verhoeven is ON: Read why the WBC sanctioned this heavyweight title fight and get the May 23 Giza match details.
Oleksandr Usyk’s unexpected fight with kickboxing legend Rico Verhoeven is officially set to be for the WBC world heavyweight title.
Usyk, now 39, will put his iconic green and gold belt on the line when he faces the 36-year-old Dutch star in a massive crossover event in Giza, Egypt, on May 23.
No one really saw this coming, especially since Usyk is still unbeaten at 24-0, with 15 knockouts. Truth is, he’s run out of real challenges in the heavyweight division. After dominating as undisputed cruiserweight champion, he’s managed to repeat that feat at heavyweight, beating Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua twice each along the way.
People expected Usyk’s next fight to be against Deontay Wilder, who’s clearly past his prime. But the chance to step into the ring with Verhoeven, a huge name in kickboxing, was just too tempting. Verhoeven almost fought Joshua back in February, but that plan blew up after Joshua’s tragic car accident in Nigeria, which took the lives of two of his closest team members.
Even though Verhoeven has just one official boxing match, a knockout win over Janos Finfera back in 2014, the WBC agreed to put its title up for grabs in this matchup.
The WBC released a statement, saying, "After careful consideration, the WBC Board of Governors has decided to sanction Oleksandr Usyk’s voluntary title defence against legendary kickboxing champion Rico Verhoeven.
At our 63rd Annual Convention in Bangkok, we granted Usyk a voluntary defence. After that, we got a petition to approve Usyk vs Verhoeven as that defence.
Usyk’s been incredibly active, taking on and beating top fighters like Anthony Joshua, Tyson Fury, and Daniel Dubois twice each while keeping his undefeated streak alive. That kind of run is unheard of in heavyweight boxing.
Rico’s been at the top level in kickboxing since 2005, and over nearly twenty years, he’s become one of the sport’s all-time greats. He’s headlined massive stadium shows, fighting in front of 30,000, sometimes 40,000 fans. At 36, he’s fought 76 times professionally and just recently gave up the Glory Kickboxing Heavyweight title after staying unbeaten for 11 years.
Switching from kickboxing to boxing isn’t new. Plenty of Muay Thai fighters have moved to boxing and fought for WBC titles early on. This decision sticks to our rules and regulations.”
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